Forlorn Hope
by MizuKaji
Summary: Over time, that life energy became a force of its own; the strong, residual feelings gathered there served as the equivalent of a soul, and the mirror began to form its own memories, to have its own feelings and desires...


Forlorn Hope

"I have always loved to watch mortals," the mirror said, a slow, sad smile spreading across her face, "The men were so strong, so full of life. The women so beautiful... and they, too, were strong in their own way. Their feelings ran deep, those mortal men and women whom I have observed these past thousands of years. Their desires so strong that they would give their very life in exchange for the fulfillment of a single wish.

"The men, the women, all so beautiful, so strong. All filled with the capacity for great good... and great evil. It was hard for me to choose between the two, having been genderless for so long while I was the mirror.

"But so many of those wishes I have granted-an innumerable amount-have been centered around women. And why not? The women seemed so beautiful, so strong and courageous, loving and stern. So close to perfection...

"And so I decided to take the form of a woman. More specifically, that of a woman whose wish I granted, and whose life I took in exchange for that wish.

"You see, at the beginning of my existence, I was nothing more than a mirror-a magic mirror, but soulless nonetheless. In order for a wish of great size to be granted, a large amount of energy is needed. And so in order to grant the wish, the mirror must consume the only energy large enough to fuel it: life energy.

"Over time, that life energy became a force of its own; the strong, residual feelings gathered there served as the equivalent of a soul, and the mirror began to form its own memories, to have its own feelings and desires...

"Whenever another life force was added, this collective 'soul' became stronger, more potent. And so I was always eager for one more victim, for a chance to see more of the world I was residing in. I became more clever at luring these would-be victims in; my tricks were many. These dark intentions had stemmed from the dark feelings from which I was born.

"But there was one incident that changed all that. One woman: beautiful, pure, she shone with a light more brilliant than the sun-I wanted that life force. Wanted it with a desire that was unstoppable. She was perfect: hair the color of a raven's wing, lips as red as blood, skin as white as snow.

"You may have heard of her. She had a real name once, though the name she has come to be known by has left it entirely forgotten to time. In legend they call her Snow White.

"I'm sure you're familiar with the story, though you probably haven't heard the real version. In most versions, a mirror has a hand in it, though it plays a much more significant role in the original. The way people tell it now, you would think that the mirror was the Evil Queen's consultant, rather than the one pulling the strings. The mirror was the real mastermind behind Snow White's death.

"The queen was vain. I could see that in a heartbeat. And that was what I used to manipulate her.

"I waited where I was sure she would find me, and once I had made known my magical qualities, she asked the question I knew she would: 'Mirror, mirror, on the wall,' she said, 'Who is the fairest of them all?'

"'Snow White,' I said, though the queen was nearly just as fair, for the life energy of Snow White's outshone them all.

"And then I subtly spun the webs of my trap, dragging them in deeper until I was sure my prey was secure. I convinced the queen to take me to Snow White in the guise of a peddler selling apples. There, she gave me to Snow White, inside the basket of apples she sold to her and waited outside for the signal: a flash of the purest light that meant Snow White was dead.

"Snow White soon found me, and I convinced her that her beloved prince was in grave danger. She held me as I spun tales-ever trusting-until she had only one desire: she wished for the protection of her beloved so that one day he could die a natural death, old and satisfied...

"And so without a second thought, she gave her life in exchange for his.

"In retrospect, that moment was my undoing... The witch came and retrieved me, the mirror, and brought me back to the castle where the prince found out what had happened. He went to fight the queen in a part of the story that was never recorded.

"Before he reached her, I quickly took advantage of her vanity, offering to make her the fairest in all the land. I took her life, altering only her reflection on my surface to make her fair in her own eyes.

"It was then that the prince barged in, and-having a strong sixth sense-knew immediately that I was a magic mirror, satiated only by dark desires.

"'Tell me where Snow White is!' he said. And so I showed him the glade where she lay lifeless, but could not steal his own life energy because I had promised he would not be harmed.

"Then he picked me up and took me in his coat pocket to where Snow White lay.

"The story had no happy ending. For years, he commanded me to show him the image of his dead beloved in my cold, reflective surface, until he slowly withered away and expired of natural causes.

"But strangely, something shifted within the mirror at that time. To this day, I am convinced that Snow White's purity was the cause; her light contaminated my darkness, and slowly a conscience grew, restless within me.

"You see... I have had a change of heart," the embodiment of the Forlorn Hope said as she cast her gaze over the small group. The incarnation had hair the color of a raven's wing, lips as red as blood, skin as white as snow...

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**AN: Just a short concept that wouldn't leave me alone. I may leave it as a one-shot, or I may eventually continue the story. If you for some reason get inspired to write a continuation or whatever, just let me know. I'd love to read it :]**

**Not sure if I should put this down as a crossover? It's not intended to be, really. If I continue it, the story would be based on Yu Yu Hakusho alone. The part about Snow White is really just a background that happened because I have a weird fascination with stories about mirrors, and I changed it a lot, so... **

**Enjoy! REVIEW! Let me know what you want me to do with it, guys. **

**(My story _Dream to Make Believe_ will still take priority, though...)**


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